Categories Archives: Book announcement

In America, we vote for our president every four years, and after the election, the power of that office is transferred non-violently to the incoming President-elect, unless the current administration was re-elected (maximum of two terms).

As stipulated in an amendment to the US Constitution, the President and Vice President are sworn in at noon on January 20th in the year following the election.

Various traditions are upheld on the day of the president’s inauguration. It is always held in our nation’s capital, and takes place outside instead of behind closed doors. Citizens are welcome to witness the ceremony and the informal parade as long as space in the streets permit, and as long as they retain order and self-discipline.

The incoming President, Vice President and their immediate families arrive at the Capitol steps by car, and customarily walk part of the way to wave and interact with the crowds lining the street. On the evening of the swearing in ceremony, inaugural balls are held throughout the city of Washington, D.C.

The ceremony itself is brief, and consists of both the president and the vice president taking a solemn oath, as directed in our Constitution:

Oath of Office for President of the United States

US Constitution, Article II, Section 1

Before he enter on the execution of his office, he shall take the following oath or affirmation: “I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

The Constitution established the national government and its fundamental laws, while guaranteeing certain basic rights for its citizens, which at that time were the white adult males of the population. The current oath of office was passed by Congress in 1884, changing the wording somewhat, and is the same oath that Members of Congress take.

When we take an oath, it is a special moment.

In times of danger in our society, ordinary citizens can perform an arrest, which, not surprisingly, is called a “citizen’s arrest.” The practice dates back to medieval times and allows citizens to hold a suspected felon even without the official right to do so.

If you’re a fan of classic television comedies you may remember the episode in The Andy Griffith Show where Deputy Barney Fife (Don Knotts) tickets Gomer Pyle (Jim Nabors), and in retaliation Gomer places Barney under citizen’s arrest for making an illegal U-turn. “Citizen’s arrest! Citizen’s arrest!” If you haven’t seen it, the clip is on YouTube and is considered one of the funniest episodes of that long-running series set in small town America.

If we can perform a citizen’s arrest under extraordinary conditions, then why can’t we take a citizen’s oath as well? These are indeed extraordinary, perilous times, when Donald Trump’s election feels more like we’ve landed in The Twilight Zone than Mayberry, RFD.

Are you ready to be one of America’s new breed of freedom fighters? Are you ready to put your commitment into words and turn the weakness of wish power into the boundless “yes, we will” power? Do you want to help create progress, liberty and justice for all?

If so, then please place your right hand over your heart and say these words: “I [your name] do solemnly affirm that I will create more goodness, more love, more joy, more kindness, and more expansion in my own life, and help others do the same.”

My new book America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters is now available. Thank you for taking this blog journey with me for the past month leading up to the inauguration of Donald Trump as the 45th President of the United States.

God bless America—keep us safe from all harm, foreign and domestic.

Are you in? Okay, then put aside the panic, breathe mindfully, and realize this is an incredible opportunity for all of us to “fight” for the freedom and justice we desire.

Forgiveness can feel like we’re being weak, like we’re saying “Oh, yeah, no big deal that Trump played a very dirty game and won even though Hillary had the popular vote.” It can feel like we’re being asked to say it doesn’t matter what Trump and his campaign did to manipulate fear throughout the world, and to rile up rural Americans nostalgic for a trip back in time to the nasty days of white supremacy where “faith” meant believing in a vengeful God and it’s okay to put the Christian injunction to “Love thy neighbor as thyself” on hold while you hate anyone who looks different from you and doesn’t attend the same church.

In an article I read years ago about Dorothy Bridges, the actress and poet who was the wife of Lloyd Bridges and mother of actors Jeff and Beau Bridges, she was quoted as saying that she raised her children to understand if they ever felt a challenge in believing in “God” to simply add another “o” to the word…and believe in “Good.”

We can all understand and relate to “good” and we can state an intention to create more of good and less of its opposite, and to hold our elected officials to the same standard.

We can’t hold grudges and also profess that we are transmitting love in response to hate.

“When they go low, we go high.”– Michelle Obama, First Lady

The process of forgiveness is actually a simple one. It involves letting go of the thoughts and feelings that you have clutched to yourself with rage, anger, resentment, and wishes for vengeance. Wherever you feel those negative emotions, it’s an indication that forgiveness will free you from that slavery to hatred.

Release the anger. Release the desire to get back at the person or organizations who have hurt or upset you. Let go of your grim determination to make someone pay for what they’ve done.

Stop looking in the rearview mirror of life. Instead, free up that energy to create good, harmony, and growth.

Transmuting fear into love is a powerful process. This goes for all issues where there is strife in our lives, not just this election debacle.

When we open to allowing love to flow and goodwill to flourish, we become aligned with the emotional vibrations of joy, peace, bliss, happiness. And in that alignment, we find our true power to create our desired results.

On the other hand, when we hang onto vengeful thoughts or the angry rehashing of events, we stay chained to emotions that, by virtue of the laws of our universe, can only bring us more things to feel angry and resentful and upset about.

Here’s a trick to making forgiveness more palatable: you’re taking the high road, you’re taking a superior position over the “you” who has until now been less aware of your own thought activities. Congratulate yourself on being willing to grow.

Once you gain the forgiveness habit, I think you’ll discover, as I did, that it makes life so much easier and more congenial to let the anger go and focus instead on what you are doing today and how you can be of service to others.

If you feel challenged to forgive and understand friends and family members who voted for Trump, take the important step of making love more important than politics. Calm your breathing, get still within, and ask for help in being a channel for universal love. Remind yourself that in one hundred years, all of us who participated in Election 2016 will be long dead. Don’t allow the anger over the election to spoil the rest of your life, don’t let it harden into bitterness or hatred. Remember always that love trumps hate, because love is of a higher nature than hate and fear and worry.

Send compassion to people who voted for Trump, and realize they followed their own hidden beliefs that are obviously fear-based in nature. They are a dying breed. As our world evolves, and the mental laws are more freely and readily understood, more and more individuals will transition upward into a greater level of awareness. People like Donald Trump will never be allowed near positions of power.

We can let go of them now, without sharing in their narrow Old Worldview of struggle and domination, of control and fear. “When we come to see that Thought is a force —a manifestation of energy —having a magnet-like power of attraction, we will begin to understand the why and wherefore of many things that have heretofore seemed dark to us….When we think we send out vibrations of a fine ethereal substance, which are as real as the vibrations manifesting light, heat, electricity, magnetism.” — William Walker Atkinson

Here is something else to consider about loving others, in spite of their opinions and behavior. When we try to make the other person or group wrong, the natural reaction on their side is to push back and prove that they are right. That clash can quickly escalate into angry shouts (and Tweets).

The higher road is to understand everyone has the right to their own opinion. We can turn away from what we don’t want and pour our mental energy into what we do want to create. It’s amazing how much freer we can feel when we stop pushing against something undesired. Even though at first it may seem the only logical recourse that we have, that isn’t true. We have far more power when we take inspired action for what we want, than when we angrily push against what we dislike or fear.

From adventures to explorers to people seeking greater freedom and prosperity – America has ever sounded the clarion call as the land of opportunities. Let us take full advantage of the freedoms we have: the right to free speech, the right to vote, the right to get a job and be paid for it, the right to create your own business and set your own prices, the right to live where you desire without discrimination, the right to life, the right to due process of law, the right to the pursuit of happiness.

Many rights and freedoms are at risk due to Trump’s election. Get involved now and let’s keep moving forward in service to the greater good.

I’ll get into all of this in greater detail in my new book America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters—coming on Inauguration Day.

Are you in? Okay, then put aside the panic, breathe mindfully, and realize this is an incredible opportunity for all of us to “fight” for the freedom and justice we desire. More to come in the rest of this blog countdown to Inauguration 2017, and in my new book which will be released that day: America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters: With Liberty and Justice for All

During World War II, “fifth columnists” were people the Nazis could count on to help Hitler’s gaping maw gulp down yet another village, city, or country. Fifth columnists lived and worked in those towns, usually having been born and raised there. These collaborators secretly worked with the enemy from within the targeted region. The first “four columns” meant the advancing formation of soldiers in four military columns, grimly marching in lock step. So, if you were known as a fifth columnist, it meant you were a traitor to your own country, and you aided and abetted the enemy either for monetary gain, power and favors (such as getting more food and fuel than the average villager), and sometimes because you also believed in the values the enemy proposed.

A collaborator can be seen as someone who is more interested in what they can gain than in what they can do to help their fellow citizens in times of great need. They look for the easy way out, the door to riches and power over others, and they turn their backs on social issues that help their country.

Is any of this beginning to feel familiar about what we face today? As they say, history repeats itself, but the only reason it does is because we continue thinking the same outworn thoughts about struggle and lack and limitation, and we have failed until now to systematically access the power of the subconscious mind to create the results we want.

If we align our thinking with Trump’s hate agenda and get on that low level vibration with him and his cronies, we inadvertently become fifth columnists, helping to undermine and destroy the very freedoms we wish to defend and protect.

During the American Revolutionary War that resulted in the colonists’ breaking away from the rule of King George III of England (and yet eventually becoming Allies and at times BFFs), the colonists who remained loyal to the King were called Tories or Loyalists or Whigs. As a whole, the colonists and American’s eastern shore had considered themselves “Englishmen,” but a big thorn in their side was the lack of representation in Parliament that all Englishmen (meaning white adult males) expected as a God-given right. Trouble kept brewing and boiled over into a battle cry. Further attempts to create harmonious relationships with the implacable King were abandoned in favor of revolution.

It was totally illegal to align yourself with the freedom fighters of 1775-6. Totally. I mean, like, you could be shot for this, because basically the colonies were owned by Great Britain and the King did not look kindly upon an uprising across the pond. I’ll let you discover the details of our fight for independence on your own. I just wanted to be sure to point out that being on General Washington’s side was not your immediate ticket to an easy life of sitting by the fire and toasting a scone while sipping tea from a dainty cup.

It was scary, it was dangerous, it required a firm belief in the high stakes of freedom. And meanwhile, back at the ranch, you had to be careful around your neighbors and villagers who remained loyal to the King.

I have been a bookworm all my life. Before the advent of ebooks, you could always find me near a stack of books bristling with notes, and I still enjoy having several books in progress at any given time. To me, books are comfort food and my first refuge.

When I was growing up, we went to the library on a regular basis and I always came home with an armful of mysteries and historical fiction to dive into. One of my favorite book series was for middle-grade girls involved a heroine who was a Patriot girl about age ten or twelve, and who had a dangerous mission to perform in total secrecy, such as smuggling a crucial message to General Washington. I adored those adventures! At the time, I didn’t even know that I was actually a Daughter of the American Revolution, although not a member. One of my sisters discovered that fact years later when doing a genealogy search about our family history.

Perhaps an angel perched on my shoulder those years ago while I was thrilling to the tale of Patriots, and whispered in my ear: “One day, when you are grown up, you will write a book to help a new kind of freedom fighter in America.”

So let’s see exactly what’s different about being a freedom fighter today compared to being on in World War II or any other great conflict where the stakes were high. We have it easier now, because from the safety of our homes, we can reach the entire world. We don’t have to print pamphlets in a hidden room and risk our lives to distribute them. We just tweet and our message is instantly heard around the world.

Mr. Trump used social media to lambast the globe with hatred and lies and promises of his idea of “greatness.”

Now let’s turn around that mis-use of a wonderful tool and instead of hammering people over the head with hatred, use the “hammer” of justice to promote progress in all areas of our society not just for a favored few.

How can you become one of America’s “new breed” of freedom fighters? Instead of printing a few dozen leaflets in a back room and furtively passing them around, we have the incredible power of instant communication around the world via social media. Let’s use technology in a positive way to share messages of hope and liberation, of freedom and justice.

The new resistance fighter doesn’t needs weapons, doesn’t need to skulk in the shadows. The new activist is someone who sees something going wrong and is willing to help. I think there’s confusion surrounding the idea of peaceful action, or of nonviolent demonstrations. It doesn’t mean you’re weak. It doesn’t mean sitting calmly and letting someone be abusive to you. It does, however, mean learning about the laws of the mind and thus understanding how to activate a sense of indifference toward the rants of people like Donald Trump and his cronies. When we are indifferent to a negative force, it will cease to exist. Our attention to it, our desire to push it away, those feelings and actions just make the negative grow stronger.

What exactly is a new kind of resistance fighter? Using the law of attraction to neutralize Trump’s plans for America, together we can achieve constructive progress instead of being the victim of expensive plans that favor the wealthy and that promote an agenda of hatred for anyone Trump disfavors.

There are so many things you can do to support progress as you go about your daily life. Although it would be wonderful if you felt called to support your favorite issues and get actively involved in supporting those causes, you don’t have to leave your house to help.

Join us in the frequency wavelength of love and expansion that circles our globe. It’s invisible, but it’s there, and all of us can access it by simply inviting in feelings of peace, light, and calmness.

When thoughts pop up that make you feel agitated or fearful, dismiss them as you would a mosquito or gnat. You don’t have to get out a cannon and angrily rant at a gnat, now do you? Of course not.

But when someone like Donald Trump strikes fear into the hearts of so many millions of people around the world, it can feel like only something “big” could possibly combat his agenda of hatred.

Not true. Love trumps hate, and you can start with love in your daily life. By doing so, by adding to the energy of love in the world, you help neutralize the negativity of Trump’s proposed agenda. He cannot win, he cannot dominate, he cannot appoint himself emperor unless we stand back and allow it by energetically aligning with the fear that rules his behavior.

When a classic narcissist such as Donald Trump gets in power, it can be terrifying indeed to listen to the rants, to watch the enraged facial expressions, to hear that fury in his voice.

Pause and put aside your anxiety–listen for the two-year-old in Trump. You’ll hear him, having a tantrum. And you will find it much easier to look away, and to stop inadvertently empowering him by being afraid and letting him call the shots.

It’s odd, but we progressives must essentially act like the loving parent to Donald Trump and set firm limits so he doesn’t destroy all of us with his out-of-control demands for walls, for deportation, for eliminating women’s affordable access to cancer screening and reproductive health care, and so many other issues he intends to stomp beneath his boots.

Perhaps his voters had already decided they would vote Republican no matter who the candidate was, even if they felt distaste when he revealed his opinion that it’s okay to grope women, it’s okay to make racist slurs and it’s okay to deport people based on their religion. They voted for him anyway, even when he bragged he doesn’t have to pay income tax, and even when he refused to make his tax returns public. They had a belief inside that a Republican would be better than a Democrat, and that belief punched the voter ballot.

Some Republicans, of course, voted for Trump because they are racist, they hate women, they don’t want anyone of color to have advantages, they want wealth for themselves and find glee in sticking it to the middle class in as many ways as possible. Their mentality is me-first and ignore the rest of the country.

Other Republicans were unable or unwilling to look past the paid ads and sound bites that glorified Trump as some sort of business wizard who would help the economy. They didn’t look past the glitter and bombast to the man beneath the self-wrought tinsel crown.

Trump enjoys taking hostages. Our trained beliefs—installed by parents, teachers, society we live in – dictate our behavior. If you’re tired of being held hostage by Trump’s constricting definition of who you are and what you are capable of achieving, then activating an understanding of the laws of thought will free you.

Pause for a moment when you feel frustrated about Trump’s supporters and their inexplicable desire for things to revert to what they consider the “good old days.” Think about when you were in high school and played with a small child or sibling. Perhaps you did some babysitting for the neighbors. From your higher perspective about life and relationships and the subjects you were studying at school, you weren’t at the same level as the little children. It didn’t mean you took a superior stance or tried to shame or scold them for their lack of awareness of geometry while they were struggling to handle multiplication.

In a similar vein, it can be liberating to realize that everyone alive at this time is helping humanity move forward. We are ever evolving upward. We are never going backwards even if it sometimes might seem that way.

The people who cling the hardest to old ways actually give motivation and impetus to those of us who are on the leading edge of change. We are the “tip of the arrow” thinkers as some people put it. We are the ones willing to keep pushing for progress.

And we can’t back down. Trump will be in office for 1,461 days. Let’s state our intention now that we will use these four years wisely to gain a firmer stronghold in grassroots community efforts for progress, that we will help get out the vote not just for the presidential election in 2020 but for local and state elections, too.

Together we can and will continue to make a positive difference for our country and our allies.

I’ll get into all of this in greater detail in my new book America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters—coming on Inauguration Day.

Are you in? Okay, then put aside the panic, breathe mindfully, and realize this is an incredible opportunity for all of us to “fight” for the freedom and justice we desire. More to come in the rest of this blog countdown to Inauguration 2017, and in my new book which will be released that day: America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters: With Liberty and Justice for All

From this point on, the choice is ours: do we move forward, or do we collectively allow fear to mire us in the mud of inaction? It’s not enough to be “against” what Trump proposes and has already begun putting into effect. We progressives must be for what we want, and use our thought energy in a much more powerful way than we have up until now.

Decide now what you want. Make a list of the issues and principles that are most important to you. Write about the big dream you have for your life, that “thing” that will bring you satisfaction and a sense of a life well-lived. If you don’t have that dream yet, take time to reflect on what you enjoy doing the most. Our hobbies and interests always contain the seed of our greatness. The reason you are drawn to sports, for instance, could be that you have an inner dream of helping others be better athletes by coaching a local team as a volunteer, inventing a new improved fabric for athletic clothes or shoes, or creating a mobile app that allows fans to track their favorite teams.

In my ecourse called “Unstoppable Confidence” I share lessons on how to go deeper into developing healthy self-confidence so that you can achieve both short-term and long-term goals in your life. Here is an excerpt from the course workbook:

Imagine you’ve reached the end of your life and – as a friendly spirit – you’re eavesdropping at your own memorial service. You nod with satisfaction as you hear the recounting of all the good you did during your journey on Earth. There’s even some good-natured ribbing over mistakes you made in a well-meaning way while learning and growing. You laugh along with the listeners as the person at the podium recounts a few anecdotes that really bring your life into full flavor.

ASSIGNMENT: Write your own eulogy NOW!

Rationale

This tool is valuable for identifying the major achievements you most desire to accomplish in your lifetime. It points out the holes where you need to pay more attention to what is important to you, and underscores the values that you hold dear.

Instead of rushing through this with a few quick comments about what a nice person you were and how much you’ll be missed, take time to do this exercise with care. You will find it helpful to use as a visionary document that can be a “map” to guide your action steps from now on.

And, of course, you can keep revising it as the years pass and you accomplish more and more of your big dreams for expressing yourself fully in the world with all of your gifts to humanity such as kindness and caring.

Earl Nightingale is known as the “Dean of Personal Development” because he was not only a popular radio personality, author and speaker on the topics of human character development, he was the first to create home study courses that were recordings. Prior to that time, you could get written course material mailed to you, but no one had thought of preparing and mailing a vinyl record so that students of the course could feel they were in the room with their teacher, and listen to the lesson again and again, thus retraining their thought habits and inculcating the lesson material. He was co-founder of the world-renowned Nightingale Conant personal development company. Nightingale defined success this way: “Success is the progressive realization of a worthy ideal or goal.”

Notice the two key words: “progressive” and “worthy.” So let’s put aside any comments that might come to mind about Donald Trump’s seeming financial success which he created with the perverted tactics of an old-style robber baron, and instead focus on how we can progressively move forward with plans that are worthy of fruition and bring value for the greater good of all.

Dr. Joseph Murphy reminds us, “Decide now to make your life grander, greater, richer, and nobler than ever before. Within your subconscious depths lie infinite wisdom, infinite power, and infinite supply of all that is necessary, which is waiting for development and expression. Begin now to recognize these potentialities of your deeper mind, and they will take form in the world without.”

It is only when we really focus on constructive goals that we can be part of the magic of manifesting true progress in our society. The powers of the mind are neutral and therefore can obviously be used to bring about recession, unemployment, and other ills. So let’s keep our attention on creating more good in the world, both for ourselves and our families and for society as a whole.

Murphy goes on to say, “In order to change external conditions, you must change the cause. Most men try to change conditions and circumstances by working with conditions and circumstances. To remove discord, confusion, lack, and limitation, you must remove the cause, and the cause is the way you are using your conscious mind. In other words, the way you are thinking and picturing in your mind. You are living in a fathomless sea of infinite riches. Your subconscious is very sensitive to your thoughts. Your thoughts form the mold or matrix through which the infinite intelligence, wisdom, vital forces, and energies of your subconscious flow.”

Donald Trump and his camp followers manipulated the world with fear and hatred just the way a war general stirs up the populace in favor of aggressive action and restrictions of those who are “different.” Trump targets the female majority of this country with threats of punitive restrictions of access to affordable care and reproductive health screenings. He successfully agitated so much fear in the hearts of listeners that people who were against his plans inadvertently poured the energy of fear into his campaign as if their emotions were attached to a funnel empowering him.

That’s not science fiction, it is science fact. Our thoughts are all connected. We are not Borgs, however; we all have our independent minds. But when we are accustomed to making choices based on reactive emotions, without understanding the power of our thoughts, we create results collectively that we would never wish for if we knew what we were doing.

Think again about your own life, and the direction you are going. Are you advancing, or are you sliding backwards, or are you at a full stop? Are you following your big dream, or just following the money from paycheck to paycheck?

We are all deserving of prosperity in every area of our lives. Wealth isn’t a problem by itself, it’s what people do with the money once they have it, and how they get it in the first place.

If you bring the world a better product or something that is of service and makes money, that’s terrific! Becoming successful with a worthy ideal will bring you satisfaction and a sense of fulfillment along with the abundance and financial freedom.

Just following the money without consideration for your core values and what you are aligning your soul with, may bring you material goods and all that money can buy, but without that satisfaction of living your dream, that type of financial success will not bring you happiness.

Do you want to remain safely on the sidelines and be a bystander for the next four years? Or do you want to take action on behalf of the issues that are most important to you?

It doesn’t mean having to go march on the White House or picket Congress. It doesn’t mean donating money, although of course you are welcome to donate to your favorite organizations such as those supporting environmental protection, feeding the hungry, educating the overlooked.

Did you know that our embarrassingly high illiteracy rate hasn’t improved in many years? 32 million adult Americans cannot read. The last thing this country needs is making education even harder for people to access. But Trump doesn’t care about that—it’s a line budget item he intends to sacrifice to make way for other things such as tax cuts for the super-wealthy.

You can continue to tell yourself things like: I feel so tired all the time, I’m really stressed out, this project (family, house, job, economy) is going to be the death of me!

OR

Start a new trend in your life with self-chat that is far more empowering and delightful such as, I really feel energized by this new project, I feel relaxed and happy, I know that everything is working out for me and I’m right where I planned all along.

Begin today. Choose the commands you give to your subconscious mind, which is the driver on the road of your life.

Affirm: Every day in every way, I advance with confidence in my heart, to help create more good in the world.

I’ll get into all of this in greater detail in my new book America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters—coming on Inauguration Day.

Are you in? Okay, then put aside the panic, breathe mindfully, and realize this is an incredible opportunity for all of us to “fight” for the freedom and justice we desire. More to come in the rest of this blog countdown to Inauguration 2017, and in my new book which will be released that day: America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters: With Liberty and Justice for All

We the Peaceful have the opportunity to stretch and grow, to become bigger than we were before, to expand beyond the point in history where we are now, instead of retreating to lick our wounds.

When we access the power of the universe, when we plug into progressive ideals, then our motivation to improve life works with that power the same as plugging a lamp into a socket. We come alive! We light up! We feel joyful and energized.

Let’s imagine future historians are looking back on the aftermath of Election 2016. What will they report? Will they say there were strong ongoing protests to Trump’s agenda and his nominees for the cabinet, and the progressives held him accountable?

Will they say that we never gave up? That we kept moving forward with our dream for all that this great country can be? Will they praise the progressives for refusing to be rattled by the threats of an extremist?

Years ago, in the early days of the Civil Rights movement to gain freedom for people of color in our country, Martin Luther King, Jr., whose birth we celebrate today, commemorated by a national holiday in his honor, delivered a speech on August 28, 1963 in Washington, D.C. as part of a nonviolent march on the capital. The initial title of his speech was “Normalcy, Never Again” but due to his repetitive use of the phrase “I have a dream” that became the name of this, his most famous speech. Dr. King was assassinated less than five years later.

These words are excerpted from Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech:

“In the process of gaining our rightful place we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred.

We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.”

If we worry that it’s going to be too hard to fight Trump and neutralize his extremist agenda, or that it’s hopeless anyway, so we might as well hunker down and wait out his term, then we are becoming part of the problem in our nation instead of standard-bearers in the realm of solutions.

When we abandon disempowering thoughts, then we create space in our hearts and minds to harness the energy of the universe and use it to manifest the results we want.

Affirm: “I do not resist this situation. I put it in the hands of Infinite Love and Wisdom. Let the Divine idea now come to pass.” Florence Scovel Shinn

I believe in the cardinal virtues of a true statesman:

> Self-control

> Capacity for listening to others and considering new ideas

> Ability to compromise

> At ease with himself

> Deeply spiritual and aware of a power greater than himself

> Desire to be of service to others

> Healthy ego, acts like the parent on an airplane, taking care of his own oxygen need first in order to be of use to his children

> Compassionate and kind

> Self-discipline

> Soft-spoken and well-mannered

> Even-tempered

> Interested in other people’s point of view

At every time in history when oppression reigned there have always been freedom fighters and resistance movements. The weight of fear and the inertia of despair caused prolonging of tyranny, but eventually we as a race always move upward into a higher level of awareness and freedom. The bondage of fear keeps us entrapped. Instead of titling my next screenplay “Nightmare on Pennsylvania Avenue” I’d rather write that dreams do come true when we work together and focus on progress.

Here is the dream I have for our country:

I dream of a nation where our leaders and citizens work together to create greater good for all.

I dream that we the people enjoy and expand our material wealth and enjoy a healthy and vibrant social structure that allows all individuals to prosper and to express their natural gifts.

I dream of a time when everyone lives in peace and harmony, having abandoned the old ideas that we must compete against each other in order to survive and struggle to afford the bare necessities. I dream that all schoolchildren learn how to use the laws of the mind and have ready access to all the support they need from their local communities and states, and at the federal level too, in order to fulfill their destinies and create more love and expansion in our great nation.

Peace in our time? Yes it is possible. If we want it enough, we can create peace. However, it won’t come by decree from outside of us. It starts within, in our own hearts. Releasing your emotional reaction to Trump’s election is the first place to start. Replace it with a sense of calmness and surety that all is working out, and together we will indeed triumph.

“This one simple change—seeking and finding peace within—could, were it undertaken by everyone, end all wars, eliminate conflict, prevent injustice, and bring the world to everlasting peace. There is no other formula necessary, or possible. World peace is a personal thing! What is needed is not a change of circumstance, but a change of consciousness.” Neale Donald Walsch, from The Complete Conversations with God

We fly our nation’s flag at half-staff (some say “half-mast”) as a sign of mourning, such as on Memorial Day in honor of our war dead, on the day before and the day after a member of Congress dies, and by proclamation from the President as well as from the Governors of individual states. The proclamations include the specific days for the flag to be at half-staff, and when the flag should be returned to full-staff, sometimes from sunrise to sunset on the same day and sometimes to be lowered to half-staff and not be returned to full-staff until a week later.

On Wednesday November 11, 2016, the day after the presidential election, I noticed that the American flag atop Belvedere Castle in New York City’s Central Park was flying at half-mast. No doubt it was a “coincidence” and there was an official reason for the signal of grief. But it seemed a providential coincidence indeed.

Over half the voters of America were in deep mourning, shocked and dismayed that our fellow citizens would actually elect a reality TV show host known for his utter disregard for the rights of others to be President of the United States. As a whole, it seems that Trump’s party is deep in anger and they want to spread it around as much as possible. I’ve been attacked (via email and social media) for writing my countdown blog and writing this book. Seriously? You can’t tolerate a writer who is offering stress relief to others?

A signal of dire distress: flying the American flag upside down.

Let us do everything we can to be sure we never need to display that signal.

I’ll get into all of this in greater detail in my new book America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters—coming on Inauguration Day.

Are you in? Okay, then put aside the panic, breathe mindfully, and realize this is an incredible opportunity for all of us to “fight” for the freedom and justice we desire. More to come in the rest of this blog countdown to Inauguration 2017, and in my new book which will be released that day: America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters: With Liberty and Justice for All

A paradigm or mindset is a collection of thousands of beliefs we hold hidden in the deep recesses of our minds.

It’s akin to the idea of a complex software program that is installed in our minds in early childhood and continually updates itself with new data and evidence that makes each pattern within the program either stronger or weaker.

For instance, you may have learned at age three from watching a sibling that it is funny to stir all your food together on your dinner plate before eating. For a while, you did it too, until the game wore off or you realized you didn’t like your food mushed together. That’s a simple example of changing one’s mind.

You may also have grown up in a family where there was a lot of sarcasm and belittling, where your ideas and dreams were mocked or discounted, and without knowing you were doing so, you formed a belief that you’re not worthy of joy or love or happiness. But as your life progressed, you got so tired of feeling that way about yourself and you looked around and realized there was information available to help you change your self-image. And you decided to take the task seriously, and steadily move toward your goals. Now, each time you slide back into thinking thoughts of discouragement, you catch yourself and replace that with a feeling of “Yes, I can” gumption.

In my opinion, we greatly need an overhaul of our collective paradigm about the power of our thinking.

While walking through Central Park during the writing of this book, I heard two men on the path behind me talking about Meryl Streep’s speech at the Golden Globes ceremony the previous evening. Golden Globes are awards bestowed by members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. During her acceptance of the Cecil B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award, Streep asked the press to hold Mr. Trump accountable now and in the future, citing his well-documented mocking of a disabled news reporter.

Here is part of Meryl Streep’s speech:

“They gave me three seconds to say this, so: An actor’s only job is to enter the lives of people who are different from us, and let you feel what that feels like. And there were many, many, many powerful performances this year that did exactly that. Breathtaking, compassionate work.

But there was one performance this year that stunned me. It sank its hooks in my heart. Not because it was good; there was nothing good about it. But it was effective and it did its job. It made its intended audience laugh, and show their teeth. It was that moment when the person asking to sit in the most respected seat in our country imitated a disabled reporter. Someone he outranked in privilege, power and the capacity to fight back. It kind of broke my heart when I saw it, and I still can’t get it out of my head, because it wasn’t in a movie. It was real life. And this instinct to humiliate, when it’s modeled by someone in the public platform, by someone powerful, it filters down into everybody’s life, because it kind of gives permission for other people to do the same thing. Disrespect invites disrespect, violence incites violence. And when the powerful use their position to bully others we all lose. O.K., go on with it. [She was being prompted to speed up.]

“O.K., this brings me to the press. We need the principled press to hold power to account, to call him [Trump] on the carpet for every outrage. That’s why our founders enshrined the press and its freedoms in the Constitution.”

Now, let’s go back to the two men talking behind me in Central Park. What drew my attention to their conversation is that I heard one of them say, “Okay, so he played a dirty game and he won but now he’s the president and Meryl Streep had no business mocking him.”

In other words, now that Trump has won, we are supposed to accept whatever he does because he is the president, and if you hold up his behavior to the light, you are the one doing the mocking?

The words that man spoke reveal his paradigm: he believes that being president gives Trump a free pass to do and say what he wants, and it is unreasonable to hold him accountable.

What can we do about such thinking? We can’t force people to change. Change has to come from within each of us in order to be real change and not just a surface compliance with what someone more powerful than you has decreed.

No one can think our thoughts for us.

No one can feel our feelings for us.

No one can create the pictures in our minds for us.

No one can take our actions for us.

But we can be pushed and goaded—and if we haven’t learned to disconnect those buttons and are hot-wired to react, then that other person does indeed call the shots.

Want to be a free agent instead of a puppet on a string? Learn more about using the law of attraction in your life. Understanding is the key to lasting, beneficial change in our lives.

For change to be effective, each individual must want to experience better results in life than what they now realize is their limiting set of beliefs about their abilities and self-worth, and they must be willing to try new things and open up to new ideas.

When someone tries to force change on any of us, no matter how well-meaning, we always resist. Think about all the times your parents scolded you to stop being messy or to change a certain habit they labeled as bad—didn’t you dig in your heels and become more determined than ever to hold onto the behavior or belief that was seemingly under attack?

Let’s not waste energy on trying to change other people’s minds and opinions. We’ve got more than enough work to do in mastering the laws of the universe so that we can attract the greater good we progressives desire for our country, even with a misogynist and racist in the White House.

Charles Haanel (1866-1949) was a New Thought teacher whose books remain popular today with those studying personal development. Below are eight lessons that Haanel offered as part of his “Master Key System” to help us better comprehend the universe we live in and the mental power we all are born with.

That much gathers more is true on every plane of existence and that loss leads to greater loss is equally true.

Mind is creative, and conditions, environment and all experiences in life are the result of our habitual or predominant mental attitude.

The attitude of mind necessarily depends upon what we think. Therefore, the secret of all power, all achievement and all possession depends upon our method of thinking.

This is true because we must “be” before we can “do,” and we can “do” only to the extent which we “are,” and what we “are” depends upon what we “think.”

We cannot express powers that we do not possess. The only way by which we may secure possession of power is to become conscious of power, and we can never become conscious of power until we learn that all power is from within.

There is a world within a world of thought and feeling and power; of light and life and beauty and, although invisible, its forces are mighty.

The world within is governed by mind. When we discover this world we shall find the solution for every problem, the cause for every effect; and since the world within is subject to our control, all laws of power and possession are also within our control.

The world without is a reflection of the world within. What appears without is what has been found within. In the world within may be found infinite Wisdom, infinite Power, and infinite Supply of all that is necessary, waiting for unfoldment, development and expression. If we recognize these potentialities in the world within they will take form in the world without.

Once we learn that there are specific rules that control the results we live with each day, then we gain access to the power of creating more joy, freedom, justice and prosperity for all.

I’ll get into all of this in greater detail in my new book America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters—coming on Inauguration Day.

Are you in? Okay, then put aside the panic, breathe mindfully, and realize this is an incredible opportunity for all of us to “fight” for the freedom and justice we desire. More to come in the rest of this blog countdown to Inauguration 2017, and in my new book which will be released that day: America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters: With Liberty and Justice for All

On January 20, 1961, the first Catholic President of the United States took office. In his Inaugural Address, John F. Kennedy shared his vision for our country and the world we share with billions of other people. His speech included these memorable words:

“And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.

“My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.

“Finally, whether you are citizens of America or citizens of the world, ask of us the same high standards of strength and sacrifice which we ask of you. With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that here on earth God’s work must truly be our own.”

It’s easy to read inspirational messages such as the excerpt above, but not always so easy to follow the advice given. What exactly can we do for our country? If you are one of the 65,844,610 Americans who voted for progress and Hillary Clinton’s platform, you may be feeling too sucker-punched to do anything more than sign petitions to hold Donald Trump accountable for his actions and his extreme right-wing nominees, and demand the release of his income tax returns (Mr. Trump: “I don’t pay income tax—I don’t have to!”).

But there is always something we can do, and when we individually do good things on a regular basis, then steadily we uplift the collective vibration of our nation to the frequency level where good things can continue to be attracted into our experiences.

In one of Agatha Christie’s mysteries, Murder at the Vicarage, her famous sleuth Miss Marple says, “For sheer primitive rage, commend me to a thoroughgoing humanitarian when you get him well roused.”

Let’s harness the power of our rage and make a commitment that we won’t back down to the Trump administration. Together, we can be well-roused directly into righteous action.

“The horror of the Hitler Experience was not that he perpetrated it on the human race, but that the human race allowed him to. The astonishment is not only that a Hitler came along, but also that so many others went along.” ― Neale Donald Walsch

It is never too late to begin creating change, and moving towards a better way of living. When we create progress for ourselves, we can’t help but create it for others at the same time, because we are all connected.

It is the misuse of power that produces tyrants and bullies—they don’t know how to share and they don’t want to learn. They strut through life, heedless of how many others they trample and destroy, but they will not escape scot-free. Perhaps it appears they will not get any “payback” but the soul memory will always be there and they will have to reconcile the damage they cause against the potential they had for creating greater goodness instead.

We choose our lives. We create them with our everyday actions, those small decisions and the larger ones as well. Primarily, we build up our life resume in the way we act under stress.

We’ve seen how Mr. Trump handles stress. He has a hair-trigger temper, and is volatile. But that doesn’t mean we have to react to everything he does, because in our reactions we become puppets, leaping at his command. A narcissist thrives on that kind of control, where by a mere glower, he can make others scurry into action.

He cracks the whip, and we’re supposed to stampede toward the slaughterhouse? I don’t think so. Don’t play into his hands by becoming fearful of what he’ll do next, or anxious about what is to come. Even though worry seems like a sign of caring, actually it is a misuse of our incredible powers of creation. Your attention to him increases his power.

If you were in a train wreck, once you were stabilized physically and had helped others in need, you would probably do your best to salvage what you could of your luggage and belongings. And then you would rebuild your life from that disaster. You wouldn’t feel that the accident had to define you from that point forward. It’s unlikely you would look at the disaster and decide you might as well make it total, so why bother to salvage anything. You wouldn’t pick up a sledgehammer and destroy what was still standing or useable, or toss your suitcase over the nearest bridge.

And yet with a shock like the 2016 election results, it can feel so devastating that it seems life will never be the same, just as if we were indeed in a virtual train wreck, and one where instead of ending, the destruction is going to continue at the hands of the very person elected to supposedly guide the country toward prosperity and security as our Commander-in-Chief.

In writing my book America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters, my intention is to create a safe and empowering landing space for everyone who feels hurled out of their normal orbit by the election of a hate-based extremist to the highest office in our country.

About 13,000 years ago, hunters from northeastern Asia crossed the Bering Land Bridge (which no longer exists, having melted) and entered what was later called “North America.” From that time forward, this land we call the United States has been a magnet for explorers, adventurers, prospectors, those seeking freedom of religion and personal expression, and many others seeking opportunities to build better lives for their families and friends.

In my own family, we have two precious letters written in 1862 by an ancestor who was the wagon train secretary on the way to Utah, having come from England to Kansas, and then across the Great Plains. The letters were to his parents back in England, and described the same sort of thing we would write home in such a situation: a wagon wheel broke and they were delayed in the fixing of it, a little girl fell in a stream and was drowned, they were looking forward to reaching their destination.

Today, we are so used to our instant communication that it can be difficult to think of waiting months if not years to hear from our loved ones who have set off for far off lands. But what about the far off lands of our imaginations? Can we travel there while taking a walk in the park or relaxing beneath a favorite shade tree? And when we imagine what we want, can we bring back those ideas and by picturing them strongly and steadily, make them materialize for the growth of our country? Yes, yes, yes. Yes, we can.

We are faced with a challenge: if Trump gets his way, walls will be built, people will be deported according to their skin color and religion, and the back of the middle class will be broken by financial burdens while the super-wealthy celebrate their tax breaks. That’s just a short list. I don’t want to depress you by listing the whole array of devastation he has planned for the environment and just about everything else you could think of. This man is such an extreme narcissist that all he sees is a bigger opportunity to inflate himself with power.

Ask yourself what you can do to help this country survive the next four years—not only to survive Trump’s administration but to thrive in spite of him and his cronies.

Allow the question “What can I do?” to settle itself quietly in your heart. Walk around with the question, get curious about the feelings you have when you think about getting more involved in your community and in issues of importance to you. You’ll recognize the answers, because you’ll feel warm in the region of your heart, and you’ll know that, perhaps for the first time in your life, you’ve discovered the purpose you came for.

For years I have been coaxing my readers and clients to get their emotions up on the Joy Channel, to tune in to that feeling of joy even before it arrives so that you are in harmony with everything you want. All the good things are of a higher finer vibration—loving relationships, fulfilling work and hobbies, vibrant health, financial abundance, and a wealth of creativity. By being grateful and happy in advance, the law of attraction brings us those happy experiences. Keep your focus on positive change, and when you do, the ideas for what you can do next will begin flowing…and will continue to come into your life on the wings of love and hope.

I’ll get into all of this in greater detail in my new book America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters—coming on Inauguration Day.

Are you in? Okay, then put aside the panic, breathe mindfully, and realize this is an incredible opportunity for all of us to “fight” for the freedom and justice we desire. More to come in the rest of this blog countdown to Inauguration 2017, and in my new book which will be released that day: America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters: With Liberty and Justice for All

When I was growing up and there was any situation that felt overwhelming, my mother’s advice was always to “rise above it.” I value that advice more now than I did in my younger years when I didn’t really understand what she meant or what the process entailed.

Looking back, I realize I thought she meant I was supposed to pretend nothing bad was happening, that I was to be cool and unruffled. I got really good at insisting I was “fine” when I was anything but that. Growing up, I learned to be passive, compliant, easy-going, but also an easy target for abusers seeking their next pliable victim. I was someone you could count on to never show anger, to always offer words of peace. I was the harmonizer, the peace-keeper, the one who smoothed things over in one relationship after another in my effort to avoid conflict, which I viewed as very scary indeed.

But about twenty years ago, I realized nothing was going to change on the outside of my life if I didn’t do something about the inside. As I steadily changed my thought habits, my actions changed too, and I moved beyond my auto-pilot behavior of being a doormat in toxic relationships with narcissistic men. I have a different point of view now, and with it comes the gift of being able to cast a kind glance over my past behavior and love that girl who hurt so much inside she didn’t know how to speak up for herself.

I spent too many years of my life in thrall to angry men, and now that I no longer feel I have to do that to get along in life, I’m speaking up at this time of Donald Trump’s election to the position of President of the United States. And I’m saying: we won’t back down to bullies. Won’t. Back. Down. To. Bullies.

Yes, it takes strength of your convictions to speak up, to step out of the familiar comfort zone of our daily lives where all of us are so busy with work, families, projects, that never-ending To Do list that dominates our schedules. But if we don’t speak up now, if we don’t act in favor of creating change, then we miss out on an incredible opportunity for personal growth as well as all the good we can bring to others through our service.

What would you like to do about Mr. Trump and the destruction he has envisioned for our health care, environment, education, labor, the minimum wage, equal pay for equal work, women’s rights, human rights , foreign policy, immigration, and other issues near and dear to the hearts of progressives?

Go ahead and think for a moment about what you would like to do. Perhaps it is to start a blog, or host a Blog Talk Radio program where you interview people involved in the issues you care about the most. Maybe you feel inspired to volunteer with different groups whose funds are at risk from budget cuts, such as programs supporting the elderly or homebound.

When we allow ourselves to daydream and just think about what we’d like to do to help, ideas will bubble up inside you in response to your interest and your request for inspiration. When you find yourself drawn toward an idea, you’ll feel a sense of joy and light-heartedness. Don’t let yourself immediately leap into “How would I do that!” limiting questions that kill our dreams.

When you feel happy about a new idea, it means it’s got your name on it, no matter how many others might be doing something similar. You’ll bring your own personality and experience to any idea you have. And don’t worry that it is too big and you aren’t capable of doing it. You wouldn’t feel exhilarated by the idea if it wasn’t something you can carry out.

As Ralph Waldo Emerson pointed out, “Once you make a decision, the Universe conspires to make it happen.” That was his observation as he delved into studying the metaphysical teachings of Jesus Christ, wanting to understand the mental techniques that were hidden in the parables and stories of the New Testament.

When I thought of writing this countdown blog, and the book whose launch it was leading up to, I knew it would be a lot of work in a condensed period of time—but I felt such joy in the ideas I couldn’t possibly say no. As I opened myself to allow inspiration free rein, the ideas just kept coming. I let them flow through me and on out into the world, to help others relieve their stress over the election results, and to begin planning what our next steps can and should be.

Now, what about the amount of courage you think you’ll need for that great idea you just had? A whole lot more than you’ve got right now? Guess what—you don’t need courage at all. Courage is a label we put on other people’s activities after the fact, as a way of praising what they have accomplished and recognizing that it took bravery to go against the odds or speak up despite scary opposition.

In 1955, when John F. Kennedy as a junior senator from Massachusetts, he wrote a book that became an instant classic, called, “Profiles in Courage.” If you haven’t read it, I urge you to do so, as it makes great inspirational reading especially in this challenging time of Trump’s election to POTUS.

A few years later, when he was President, Kennedy dealt diplomatically with the Cuban Missile Crisis, and averted nuclear war with Russia. In a speech after the crisis, President Kennedy said: “Let us not be blind to our differences—but let us also direct attention to our common interests and to the means by which those differences can be resolved. And if we cannot end our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity. For, in the final analysis, our most common link is that we all inhabit this small planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children’s future. And we are all mortal.”

Those words are clearly applicable to the state of our emotionally divided country today. President Obama has given an indelible message to Democrats and Progressives: “Stand with me. Let’s finish what we started.”

We have created a lot of good in this country. Of course it’s not perfect, it’s evolving. Let’s prevent Trump from going the other direction to the white bread, white pasteurized milk fantasy land his supporters angrily demand.

Below is the official transcript from the White House of President Obama’s farewell speech to the nation on January 10, 2017. I feel it is the perfect call to action for all of us to allow courage to flow in our veins and keep on working together despite the challenges we face after Trump’s election.

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THE PRESIDENT: Hello, Chicago! (Applause.) It’s good to be home! (Applause.) Thank you, everybody. Thank you. (Applause.) Thank you so much. Thank you. (Applause.) All right, everybody sit down. (Applause.) We’re on live TV here. I’ve got to move. (Applause.) You can tell that I’m a lame duck because nobody is following instructions. (Laughter.) Everybody have a seat. (Applause.)

My fellow Americans — (applause) — Michelle and I have been so touched by all the well wishes that we’ve received over the past few weeks. But tonight, it’s my turn to say thanks. (Applause.)

Whether we have seen eye-to-eye or rarely agreed at all, my conversations with you, the American people, in living rooms and in schools, at farms, on factory floors, at diners and on distant military outposts — those conversations are what have kept me honest, and kept me inspired, and kept me going. And every day, I have learned from you. You made me a better President, and you made me a better man. (Applause.)

So I first came to Chicago when I was in my early 20s. And I was still trying to figure out who I was, still searching for a purpose in my life. And it was a neighborhood not far from here where I began working with church groups in the shadows of closed steel mills. It was on these streets where I witnessed the power of faith, and the quiet dignity of working people in the face of struggle and loss.

AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!

THE PRESIDENT: I can’t do that.

AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!

THE PRESIDENT: This is where I learned that change only happens when ordinary people get involved and they get engaged, and they come together to demand it.

After eight years as your President, I still believe that. And it’s not just my belief. It’s the beating heart of our American idea — our bold experiment in self-government. It’s the conviction that we are all created equal, endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable rights, among them life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It’s the insistence that these rights, while self-evident, have never been self-executing; that We, the People, through the instrument of our democracy, can form a more perfect union.

What a radical idea. A great gift that our Founders gave to us: The freedom to chase our individual dreams through our sweat and toil and imagination, and the imperative to strive together, as well, to achieve a common good, a greater good.

For 240 years, our nation’s call to citizenship has given work and purpose to each new generation. It’s what led patriots to choose republic over tyranny, pioneers to trek west, slaves to brave that makeshift railroad to freedom. It’s what pulled immigrants and refugees across oceans and the Rio Grande. (Applause.) It’s what pushed women to reach for the ballot. It’s what powered workers to organize. It’s why GIs gave their lives at Omaha Beach and Iwo Jima, Iraq and Afghanistan. And why men and women from Selma to Stonewall were prepared to give theirs, as well. (Applause.)

So that’s what we mean when we say America is exceptional — not that our nation has been flawless from the start, but that we have shown the capacity to change and make life better for those who follow. Yes, our progress has been uneven. The work of democracy has always been hard. It’s always been contentious. Sometimes it’s been bloody. For every two steps forward, it often feels we take one step back. But the long sweep of America has been defined by forward motion, a constant widening of our founding creed to embrace all and not just some. (Applause.)

If I had told you eight years ago that America would reverse a great recession, reboot our auto industry, and unleash the longest stretch of job creation in our history — (applause) — if I had told you that we would open up a new chapter with the Cuban people, shut down Iran’s nuclear weapons program without firing a shot, take out the mastermind of 9/11 — (applause) — if I had told you that we would win marriage equality, and secure the right to health insurance for another 20 million of our fellow citizens — (applause) — if I had told you all that, you might have said our sights were set a little too high. But that’s what we did. (Applause.) That’s what you did.

You were the change. You answered people’s hopes, and because of you, by almost every measure, America is a better, stronger place than it was when we started. (Applause.)

In 10 days, the world will witness a hallmark of our democracy.

AUDIENCE: Nooo —

THE PRESIDENT: No, no, no, no, no — the peaceful transfer of power from one freely elected President to the next. (Applause.) I committed to President-elect Trump that my administration would ensure the smoothest possible transition, just as President Bush did for me. (Applause.) Because it’s up to all of us to make sure our government can help us meet the many challenges we still face.

We have what we need to do so. We have everything we need to meet those challenges. After all, we remain the wealthiest, most powerful, and most respected nation on Earth. Our youth, our drive, our diversity and openness, our boundless capacity for risk and reinvention means that the future should be ours. But that potential will only be realized if our democracy works. Only if our politics better reflects the decency of our people. (Applause.) Only if all of us, regardless of party affiliation or particular interests, help restore the sense of common purpose that we so badly need right now.

That’s what I want to focus on tonight: The state of our democracy. Understand, democracy does not require uniformity. Our founders argued. They quarreled. Eventually they compromised. They expected us to do the same. But they knew that democracy does require a basic sense of solidarity — the idea that for all our outward differences, we’re all in this together; that we rise or fall as one. (Applause.)

There have been moments throughout our history that threatens that solidarity. And the beginning of this century has been one of those times. A shrinking world, growing inequality; demographic change and the specter of terrorism — these forces haven’t just tested our security and our prosperity, but are testing our democracy, as well. And how we meet these challenges to our democracy will determine our ability to educate our kids, and create good jobs, and protect our homeland. In other words, it will determine our future.

To begin with, our democracy won’t work without a sense that everyone has economic opportunity. And the good news is that today the economy is growing again. Wages, incomes, home values, and retirement accounts are all rising again. Poverty is falling again. (Applause.)

The wealthy are paying a fairer share of taxes even as the stock market shatters records. The unemployment rate is near a 10-year low. The uninsured rate has never, ever been lower. (Applause.) Health care costs are rising at the slowest rate in 50 years. And I’ve said and I mean it — if anyone can put together a plan that is demonstrably better than the improvements we’ve made to our health care system and that covers as many people at less cost, I will publicly support it. (Applause.)

Because that, after all, is why we serve. Not to score points or take credit, but to make people’s lives better. (Applause.)

But for all the real progress that we’ve made, we know it’s not enough. Our economy doesn’t work as well or grow as fast when a few prosper at the expense of a growing middle class and ladders for folks who want to get into the middle class. (Applause.) That’s the economic argument. But stark inequality is also corrosive to our democratic ideal. While the top one percent has amassed a bigger share of wealth and income, too many families, in inner cities and in rural counties, have been left behind — the laid-off factory worker; the waitress or health care worker who’s just barely getting by and struggling to pay the bills — convinced that the game is fixed against them, that their government only serves the interests of the powerful — that’s a recipe for more cynicism and polarization in our politics.

But there are no quick fixes to this long-term trend. I agree, our trade should be fair and not just free. But the next wave of economic dislocations won’t come from overseas. It will come from the relentless pace of automation that makes a lot of good, middle-class jobs obsolete.

And so we’re going to have to forge a new social compact to guarantee all our kids the education they need — (applause) — to give workers the power to unionize for better wages; to update the social safety net to reflect the way we live now, and make more reforms to the tax code so corporations and individuals who reap the most from this new economy don’t avoid their obligations to the country that’s made their very success possible. (Applause.)

We can argue about how to best achieve these goals. But we can’t be complacent about the goals themselves. For if we don’t create opportunity for all people, the disaffection and division that has stalled our progress will only sharpen in years to come.

There’s a second threat to our democracy — and this one is as old as our nation itself. After my election, there was talk of a post-racial America. And such a vision, however well-intended, was never realistic. Race remains a potent and often divisive force in our society. Now, I’ve lived long enough to know that race relations are better than they were 10, or 20, or 30 years ago, no matter what some folks say. (Applause.) You can see it not just in statistics, you see it in the attitudes of young Americans across the political spectrum.

But we’re not where we need to be. And all of us have more work to do. (Applause.) If every economic issue is framed as a struggle between a hardworking white middle class and an undeserving minority, then workers of all shades are going to be left fighting for scraps while the wealthy withdraw further into their private enclaves. (Applause.) If we’re unwilling to invest in the children of immigrants, just because they don’t look like us, we will diminish the prospects of our own children — because those brown kids will represent a larger and larger share of America’s workforce. (Applause.) And we have shown that our economy doesn’t have to be a zero-sum game. Last year, incomes rose for all races, all age groups, for men and for women.

So if we’re going to be serious about race going forward, we need to uphold laws against discrimination — in hiring, and in housing, and in education, and in the criminal justice system. (Applause.) That is what our Constitution and our highest ideals require. (Applause.)

But laws alone won’t be enough. Hearts must change. It won’t change overnight. Social attitudes oftentimes take generations to change. But if our democracy is to work in this increasingly diverse nation, then each one of us need to try to heed the advice of a great character in American fiction — Atticus Finch — (applause) — who said “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view…until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.”

For blacks and other minority groups, it means tying our own very real struggles for justice to the challenges that a lot of people in this country face — not only the refugee, or the immigrant, or the rural poor, or the transgender American, but also the middle-aged white guy who, from the outside, may seem like he’s got advantages, but has seen his world upended by economic and cultural and technological change. We have to pay attention, and listen. (Applause.)

For white Americans, it means acknowledging that the effects of slavery and Jim Crow didn’t suddenly vanish in the ’60s — (applause) — that when minority groups voice discontent, they’re not just engaging in reverse racism or practicing political correctness. When they wage peaceful protest, they’re not demanding special treatment but the equal treatment that our Founders promised. (Applause.)

For native-born Americans, it means reminding ourselves that the stereotypes about immigrants today were said, almost word for word, about the Irish, and Italians, and Poles — who it was said we’re going to destroy the fundamental character of America. And as it turned out, America wasn’t weakened by the presence of these newcomers; these newcomers embraced this nation’s creed, and this nation was strengthened. (Applause.)

So regardless of the station that we occupy, we all have to try harder. We all have to start with the premise that each of our fellow citizens loves this country just as much as we do; that they value hard work and family just like we do; that their children are just as curious and hopeful and worthy of love as our own. (Applause.)

And that’s not easy to do. For too many of us, it’s become safer to retreat into our own bubbles, whether in our neighborhoods or on college campuses, or places of worship, or especially our social media feeds, surrounded by people who look like us and share the same political outlook and never challenge our assumptions. The rise of naked partisanship, and increasing economic and regional stratification, the splintering of our media into a channel for every taste — all this makes this great sorting seem natural, even inevitable. And increasingly, we become so secure in our bubbles that we start accepting only information, whether it’s true or not, that fits our opinions, instead of basing our opinions on the evidence that is out there. (Applause.)

And this trend represents a third threat to our democracy. But politics is a battle of ideas. That’s how our democracy was designed. In the course of a healthy debate, we prioritize different goals, and the different means of reaching them. But without some common baseline of facts, without a willingness to admit new information, and concede that your opponent might be making a fair point, and that science and reason matter — (applause) — then we’re going to keep talking past each other, and we’ll make common ground and compromise impossible. (Applause.)

And isn’t that part of what so often makes politics dispiriting? How can elected officials rage about deficits when we propose to spend money on preschool for kids, but not when we’re cutting taxes for corporations? (Applause.) How do we excuse ethical lapses in our own party, but pounce when the other party does the same thing? It’s not just dishonest, this selective sorting of the facts; it’s self-defeating. Because, as my mother used to tell me, reality has a way of catching up with you. (Applause.)

Take the challenge of climate change. In just eight years, we’ve halved our dependence on foreign oil; we’ve doubled our renewable energy; we’ve led the world to an agreement that has the promise to save this planet. (Applause.) But without bolder action, our children won’t have time to debate the existence of climate change. They’ll be busy dealing with its effects: more environmental disasters, more economic disruptions, waves of climate refugees seeking sanctuary.

Now, we can and should argue about the best approach to solve the problem. But to simply deny the problem not only betrays future generations, it betrays the essential spirit of this country — the essential spirit of innovation and practical problem-solving that guided our Founders. (Applause.)

It is that spirit, born of the Enlightenment, that made us an economic powerhouse — the spirit that took flight at Kitty Hawk and Cape Canaveral; the spirit that cures disease and put a computer in every pocket.

It’s that spirit — a faith in reason, and enterprise, and the primacy of right over might — that allowed us to resist the lure of fascism and tyranny during the Great Depression; that allowed us to build a post-World War II order with other democracies, an order based not just on military power or national affiliations but built on principles — the rule of law, human rights, freedom of religion, and speech, and assembly, and an independent press. (Applause.)

That order is now being challenged — first by violent fanatics who claim to speak for Islam; more recently by autocrats in foreign capitals who see free markets and open democracies and and civil society itself as a threat to their power. The peril each poses to our democracy is more far-reaching than a car bomb or a missile. It represents the fear of change; the fear of people who look or speak or pray differently; a contempt for the rule of law that holds leaders accountable; an intolerance of dissent and free thought; a belief that the sword or the gun or the bomb or the propaganda machine is the ultimate arbiter of what’s true and what’s right.

Because of the extraordinary courage of our men and women in uniform, because of our intelligence officers, and law enforcement, and diplomats who support our troops — (applause) — no foreign terrorist organization has successfully planned and executed an attack on our homeland these past eight years. (Applause.) And although Boston and Orlando and San Bernardino and Fort Hood remind us of how dangerous radicalization can be, our law enforcement agencies are more effective and vigilant than ever. We have taken out tens of thousands of terrorists — including bin Laden. (Applause.) The global coalition we’re leading against ISIL has taken out their leaders, and taken away about half their territory. ISIL will be destroyed, and no one who threatens America will ever be safe. (Applause.)

And to all who serve or have served, it has been the honor of my lifetime to be your Commander-in-Chief. And we all owe you a deep debt of gratitude. (Applause.)

But protecting our way of life, that’s not just the job of our military. Democracy can buckle when we give in to fear. So, just as we, as citizens, must remain vigilant against external aggression, we must guard against a weakening of the values that make us who we are. (Applause.)

And that’s why, for the past eight years, I’ve worked to put the fight against terrorism on a firmer legal footing. That’s why we’ve ended torture, worked to close Gitmo, reformed our laws governing surveillance to protect privacy and civil liberties. (Applause.) That’s why I reject discrimination against Muslim Americans, who are just as patriotic as we are. (Applause.)

That’s why we cannot withdraw from big global fights — to expand democracy, and human rights, and women’s rights, and LGBT rights. No matter how imperfect our efforts, no matter how expedient ignoring such values may seem, that’s part of defending America. For the fight against extremism and intolerance and sectarianism and chauvinism are of a piece with the fight against authoritarianism and nationalist aggression. If the scope of freedom and respect for the rule of law shrinks around the world, the likelihood of war within and between nations increases, and our own freedoms will eventually be threatened.

So let’s be vigilant, but not afraid. (Applause.) ISIL will try to kill innocent people. But they cannot defeat America unless we betray our Constitution and our principles in the fight. (Applause.) Rivals like Russia or China cannot match our influence around the world — unless we give up what we stand for — (applause) — and turn ourselves into just another big country that bullies smaller neighbors.

Which brings me to my final point: Our democracy is threatened whenever we take it for granted. (Applause.) All of us, regardless of party, should be throwing ourselves into the task of rebuilding our democratic institutions. (Applause.) When voting rates in America are some of the lowest among advanced democracies, we should be making it easier, not harder, to vote. (Applause.) When trust in our institutions is low, we should reduce the corrosive influence of money in our politics, and insist on the principles of transparency and ethics in public service. (Applause.) When Congress is dysfunctional, we should draw our congressional districts to encourage politicians to cater to common sense and not rigid extremes. (Applause.)

But remember, none of this happens on its own. All of this depends on our participation; on each of us accepting the responsibility of citizenship, regardless of which way the pendulum of power happens to be swinging.

Our Constitution is a remarkable, beautiful gift. But it’s really just a piece of parchment. It has no power on its own. We, the people, give it power. (Applause.) We, the people, give it meaning. With our participation, and with the choices that we make, and the alliances that we forge. (Applause.) Whether or not we stand up for our freedoms. Whether or not we respect and enforce the rule of law. That’s up to us. America is no fragile thing. But the gains of our long journey to freedom are not assured.

In his own farewell address, George Washington wrote that self-government is the underpinning of our safety, prosperity, and liberty, but “from different causes and from different quarters much pains will be taken…to weaken in your minds the conviction of this truth.” And so we have to preserve this truth with “jealous anxiety;” that we should reject “the first dawning of every attempt to alienate any portion of our country from the rest or to enfeeble the sacred ties” that make us one. (Applause.)

America, we weaken those ties when we allow our political dialogue to become so corrosive that people of good character aren’t even willing to enter into public service; so coarse with rancor that Americans with whom we disagree are seen not just as misguided but as malevolent. We weaken those ties when we define some of us as more American than others; when we write off the whole system as inevitably corrupt, and when we sit back and blame the leaders we elect without examining our own role in electing them. (Applause.)

It falls to each of us to be those anxious, jealous guardians of our democracy; to embrace the joyous task we’ve been given to continually try to improve this great nation of ours. Because for all our outward differences, we, in fact, all share the same proud title, the most important office in a democracy: Citizen. (Applause.) Citizen.

So, you see, that’s what our democracy demands. It needs you. Not just when there’s an election, not just when your own narrow interest is at stake, but over the full span of a lifetime. If you’re tired of arguing with strangers on the Internet, try talking with one of them in real life. (Applause.) If something needs fixing, then lace up your shoes and do some organizing. (Applause.) If you’re disappointed by your elected officials, grab a clipboard, get some signatures, and run for office yourself. (Applause.) Show up. Dive in. Stay at it.

Sometimes you’ll win. Sometimes you’ll lose. Presuming a reservoir of goodness in other people, that can be a risk, and there will be times when the process will disappoint you. But for those of us fortunate enough to have been a part of this work, and to see it up close, let me tell you, it can energize and inspire. And more often than not, your faith in America — and in Americans — will be confirmed. (Applause.)

Mine sure has been. Over the course of these eight years, I’ve seen the hopeful faces of young graduates and our newest military officers. I have mourned with grieving families searching for answers, and found grace in a Charleston church. I’ve seen our scientists help a paralyzed man regain his sense of touch. I’ve seen wounded warriors who at points were given up for dead walk again. I’ve seen our doctors and volunteers rebuild after earthquakes and stop pandemics in their tracks. I’ve seen the youngest of children remind us through their actions and through their generosity of our obligations to care for refugees, or work for peace, and, above all, to look out for each other. (Applause.)

So that faith that I placed all those years ago, not far from here, in the power of ordinary Americans to bring about change — that faith has been rewarded in ways I could not have possibly imagined. And I hope your faith has, too. Some of you here tonight or watching at home, you were there with us in 2004, in 2008, 2012 — (applause) — maybe you still can’t believe we pulled this whole thing off. Let me tell you, you’re not the only ones. (Laughter.)

Michelle — (applause) — Michelle LaVaughn Robinson, girl of the South Side — (applause) — for the past 25 years, you have not only been my wife and mother of my children, you have been my best friend. (Applause.) You took on a role you didn’t ask for and you made it your own, with grace and with grit and with style and good humor. (Applause.) You made the White House a place that belongs to everybody. (Applause.) And the new generation sets its sights higher because it has you as a role model. (Applause.) So you have made me proud. And you have made the country proud. (Applause.)

Malia and Sasha, under the strangest of circumstances, you have become two amazing young women. You are smart and you are beautiful, but more importantly, you are kind and you are thoughtful and you are full of passion. (Applause.) You wore the burden of years in the spotlight so easily. Of all that I’ve done in my life, I am most proud to be your dad. (Applause.)

To Joe Biden — (applause) — the scrappy kid from Scranton who became Delaware’s favorite son — you were the first decision I made as a nominee, and it was the best. (Applause.) Not just because you have been a great Vice President, but because in the bargain, I gained a brother. And we love you and Jill like family, and your friendship has been one of the great joys of our lives. (Applause.)

To my remarkable staff: For eight years — and for some of you, a whole lot more — I have drawn from your energy, and every day I tried to reflect back what you displayed — heart, and character, and idealism. I’ve watched you grow up, get married, have kids, start incredible new journeys of your own. Even when times got tough and frustrating, you never let Washington get the better of you. You guarded against cynicism. And the only thing that makes me prouder than all the good that we’ve done is the thought of all the amazing things that you’re going to achieve from here. (Applause.)

And to all of you out there — every organizer who moved to an unfamiliar town, every kind family who welcomed them in, every volunteer who knocked on doors, every young person who cast a ballot for the first time, every American who lived and breathed the hard work of change — you are the best supporters and organizers anybody could ever hope for, and I will be forever grateful. (Applause.) Because you did change the world. (Applause.) You did.

And that’s why I leave this stage tonight even more optimistic about this country than when we started. Because I know our work has not only helped so many Americans, it has inspired so many Americans — especially so many young people out there — to believe that you can make a difference — (applause) — to hitch your wagon to something bigger than yourselves.

Let me tell you, this generation coming up — unselfish, altruistic, creative, patriotic — I’ve seen you in every corner of the country. You believe in a fair, and just, and inclusive America. (Applause.) You know that constant change has been America’s hallmark; that it’s not something to fear but something to embrace. You are willing to carry this hard work of democracy forward. You’ll soon outnumber all of us, and I believe as a result the future is in good hands. (Applause.)

My fellow Americans, it has been the honor of my life to serve you. (Applause.) I won’t stop. In fact, I will be right there with you, as a citizen, for all my remaining days. But for now, whether you are young or whether you’re young at heart, I do have one final ask of you as your President — the same thing I asked when you took a chance on me eight years ago. I’m asking you to believe. Not in my ability to bring about change — but in yours.

I am asking you to hold fast to that faith written into our founding documents; that idea whispered by slaves and abolitionists; that spirit sung by immigrants and homesteaders and those who marched for justice; that creed reaffirmed by those who planted flags from foreign battlefields to the surface of the moon; a creed at the core of every American whose story is not yet written: Yes, we can. (Applause.)

Yes, we did. Yes, we can. (Applause.)

Thank you. God bless you. May God continue to bless the United States of America. (Applause.)

###

Thank you, Mr. President, for your years of service and inspiration. My response to his farewell speech: Together, we can continue to make a beautiful difference in our country, even with Mr. Trump in the White House.

I’ll get into all of this in greater detail in my new book America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters—coming on Inauguration Day.

Are you in? Okay, then put aside the panic, breathe mindfully, and realize this is an incredible opportunity for all of us to “fight” for the freedom and justice we desire. More to come in the rest of this blog countdown to Inauguration 2017, and in my new book which will be released that day: America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters: With Liberty and Justice for All

We have much to be thankful for. Turn your thoughts away from thinking about Donald Trump and all his ranting and raving, and the bigots and racists he’s nominating for positions of great power in our country. Do what you can to make your voice heard to your people in Congress, sign petitions, let your opinion be known.

But…don’t get so focused on pushing against Trump and his cronies that you stir up a resonance within yourself that is so fear-based you are putting yourself at risk for dis-ease and all the curses of the world that come in response to deeply negative thinking. You don’t want to be on Trump’s wavelength for more than a couple of seconds! Less, if possible.

Focus on all the things you intend to do to help our country progress, with liberty and justice for all.

The feeling to evoke in ourselves is one of appreciation for all the good that we already have. Look around your life and notice how much you have to be grateful for, starting with the basic material things like food, clothing and shelter, and going on to your relationships, your ability to learn and grow and make choices about your lifestyle that many people in the world don’t have access to.

Think about things that make you feel happy no matter what, such as a garden in bloom, a cup of tea on a chilly day, playing with your pet, children or grandchildren, reading a good book. That welling up of gratitude for the small gifts of life is the feeling of appreciation. When we nurture appreciation, the universe sends us – all of us—more experiences to be grateful for. Gratitude in advance of the results we want actually brings us those results faster.

Dr. Joseph Murphy recounts the story of one of his clients, a young engineer who was upset about the religious beliefs he’d been raised with. Murphy explained to him that “irritation causes oysters to give birth to pearls.”

You may have had a similar experience at least once in your life, and more likely a dozen or more times, when a person or situation was so annoying or troublesome that you ended up using your feelings to propel you into action to change things. Perhaps you got fed up with your boss, and ended up striking out on a new career that brings much more satisfaction than you could ever have achieved at the safe old job.

Murphy reports that the engineer began studying the world’s religions and discovered the inner meaning of parables and fables, going on to find success by applying the techniques he learned. Dr. Murphy sums up the anecdote by pointing out to us, “If you are supremely happy along religious, political and social lines, you don’t seek truth. It is because certain things went wrong that you sought a greater answer and a way out. Then your subjective self opened a new door for you, and a new light or spiritual awareness was born. When you look back upon the irritation or the problem, you should be grateful and thankful for the challenge, and praise and bless the experience.”

Donald Trump’s irritation factor is off the charts. But let’s think about all those “pearls” we can create in spite of Trump, spurred on by that very irritation so that we bring forth wondrous things in the world that are as precious as pearls.

Instead of viewing Trump through the lens of fear and anger, let’s look at him in a more detached way—remove all that emotion he manipulated and stirred up in the hearts of countless millions—and see him as a catalyst.

Merriam-Webster dictionary defines catalyst in this way:

a substance that enables a chemical reaction to proceed at a usually faster rate or under different conditions (as at a lower temperature) than otherwise possible;

an agent that provokes or speeds significant change or action

In chemistry, a catalyst is a substance that sparks an energy change, but by itself is nothing.

That’s Trump to a “T”—nothing.

It’s what we do with this catalyst (Trump’s election) that is going to count.

Let’s not waste this opportunity to create huge, wonderful change across our country, and by the ripple effect, around the world.

When we magnetize gratitude to ourselves, it means we find something good everywhere we look, and when necessary we “turn the other cheek” so we are looking in the opposite direction from a sight that was bringing up feelings of fear and uneasiness.

Every good thought you think, every good word you speak, every good emotion you feel, and every act of kindness you perform, is lifting the frequency of your being to new heights. And as you begin to raise your frequency, a new life and a new world will reveal themselves to you. You will emit positive forces of energy across planet Earth that will reach every single living thing on it.

You will lift yourself, and as you lift yourself, you lift the entire world.

When you magnetize gratitude to yourself, it’s like creating a magic carpet that rolls out in front of you every day, bringing joyful experiences, happy relationships, prosperity, and great health.

I’ll get into all of this in greater detail in my new book America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters—coming on Inauguration Day.

Are you in? Okay, then put aside the panic, breathe mindfully, and realize this is an incredible opportunity for all of us to “fight” for the freedom and justice we desire. More to come in the rest of this blog countdown to Inauguration 2017, and in my new book which will be released that day: America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters: With Liberty and Justice for All

Have you ever walked into a room and sensed evil? Have you picked up on the fact a friend is upset even though they tell you earnestly that they are perfectly fine and nothing is the matter? Have you had a bad feeling about something, gone ahead anyway, and regretted not following your initial hunch?

Our early training has drilled us in the habits of logic, but our intuition persists in picking up vibrational clues about the world around us and the people we interact with or come in to contact with through our amazing communication system of broadcasts and telephones and internet videos and social media.

We sense when someone is lying. But then what? If you’ve been taught to disregard your own inner dialogue, you dismiss that feeling and believe the words the person is saying instead.

In thinking about Mr. Trump, I keep coming back to the command to God, “deliver us from evil” that is in The Lord’s Prayer beloved by many millions of people. It is sometimes called the perfect prayer, and metaphysically speaking that is true, regardless of what your religion or lack of religious beliefs.

The prayer is a series of demands and praise, in the perfect balance. It establishes our relationship with the Law (Lord) of the Universe, and invokes the blessings we desire to lead a happier and healthier life.

When we say “deliver us from evil”—there’s an implication that we are being sent elsewhere, away from it. Right? Think about ordering a delivery from your favorite restaurant. You mull over what to get, place the order, and sooner or later it arrives. You got a delivery from… and it was delivered to…

In asking to be delivered from evil, where are we asking to be delivered to? I think it is a matter of looking at opposites and realizing if we want to move away from evil or sin, which is the lack of love, then we must logically intend to move towards more love.

Evil and sin are both the absence of love. There is no such entity as the devil or evil, no matter what we’ve been taught by churches and temples with a goal of frightening us into behaving.

If there really was a force of nature called evil, then there could be no love, because the two would cancel each other out.

Toxic behavior is rampant in our culture, promoted by rudeness on popular TV shows, biting sarcasm that gets applause and a laugh track, and the growing prevalence in social media to say whatever one feels like saying in the moment and then tap “send” or “post” without filtering for common courtesy. It’s as if someone shouted “no holds barred” and the melee began. People who don’t have a photo on their profile seem to really go wild, but maybe that’s just my perception that they feel the safety of anonymity means they can lambast anyone and everyone.

Our words truly are boomerangs—when someone transmits messages of hate, then acts of hate come hurling right back to land at our feet. Anything that is on the same vibrational frequency as hate will return as a “reply to sender.” That means poor health, sudden problems at work, unexpected car or house repairs, a financial gut clench, a relationship disaster seemingly out of the blue. But it is never out of the blue, it is always something we have attracted into our experience by virtue of our emotional thoughts and hidden beliefs.

Trump’s supporters, primarily in the “Red States” seem to be operating under mass hypnosis, believing in his promises to make America “great again”—meaning, get rid of anyone who is not a white Christian.

They want to bring back the homogenized white milk days, and disallow any chocolate.

They want to bring back the so-called good old days when people of color were barred from restaurants, restrooms and public transportation (other than special seating in the back) and many other rights granted to whites. There is ample information online about the days of segregation that you can read about if desired.

I was a child in segregated Texas way back when, and somehow I managed to grow up and out of that mindset and supported Civil Rights when all that came along while I was still young. My mother enjoyed records from Broadway musicals, and I learned all the words to many different songs. One that I feel applies in a deep sense to what our country is going through right now is this one, from the musical South Pacific by Rodgers and Hammerstein.

“You’ve Got to Be Taught”

You’ve got to be taught
To hate and fear
You’ve got to be taught
From year to year
It’s got to be drummed
In your dear little ear
You’ve got to be carefully taught
You’ve got to be taught
To be afraid
Of people whose eyes
Are oddly made
And people whose skin
Is a different shade
You’ve got to be carefully taught
You’ve got to be taught
Before it’s too late
Before you are six or seven or eight
To hate all the people
Your relatives hate
You’ve got to be carefully taught

Whatever we have been taught, we can make a decision to change our belief to something of a higher nature. But first we must become aware of what those beliefs are! When we have hidden beliefs, we walk around on auto-pilot, not questioning our opinion of others.

One thing that Trump’s election is good for is that it has brought greater awareness to the issues of human rights in our own country. Progressive thinkers—meaning all people who want to grow and enjoy life, regardless of political party—are speaking up and demanding to be heard.

People who probably thought everything was going along fine in our country, maybe not perfect, but better than elsewhere, got a rude awakening and are now responding to demonstrate what they want.

I think what we consider “evil” are people who have no principles, no moral compass, and yet who brag and scream that they are the ones who have been saved and the rest of us are damned for all eternity. From my perspective, it’s sad to see that we cannot free them from their narrow perceptions and lack of awareness, because they don’t see they are trapped in a small way of thinking. People who lead small lives often are not interested in growing: it’s too scary to break out of their generational rut and risk offending family and friends.

But the rest of us, the progressives, the people who are eager to create more joy and love in the world, we can sing out and say: Deliver us from evil—let us turn our attention and vibrational force of love toward expansion and a better life for all Americans.

I’ll get into all of this in greater detail in my new book America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters—coming on Inauguration Day.

Are you in? Okay, then put aside the panic, breathe mindfully, and realize this is an incredible opportunity for all of us to “fight” for the freedom and justice we desire. More to come in the rest of this blog countdown to Inauguration 2017, and in my new book which will be released that day: America’s New Breed of Freedom Fighters: With Liberty and Justice for All

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